


What Were The Buttons Up To On The Armistice Day

by theniftycat



Category: Ghosts (TV 2019)
Genre: Gen, Humor, Pre-Canon, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-11
Updated: 2020-11-11
Packaged: 2021-03-10 02:55:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,110
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27507205
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theniftycat/pseuds/theniftycat
Summary: How the Ghosts celebrated the 100th anniversary of the Armistice.
Comments: 10
Kudos: 50





	What Were The Buttons Up To On The Armistice Day

The house was cold and empty as ever. Lighting up the fire place was too hard for Heather Button, so, she just cuddled up in an old shawl. Today there was supposed to be something nice on the telly, wasn't there?..

Her tv-set was old and small. She had to sit less than a foot from it to recognise anyone at all. Maybe her vision was to blame, maybe the picture tube got worse after all. She had lost her remote control years ago and the front buttons on her telly were nearly all gone. Turning it on was hard enough and she didn't even bother to change the channel. BBC-1 it was and she was happy about it.

Television was always an afterthought for her, she'd been used to doing anything else before it entered her life when she was nearly 40. But with age she found it nicer and nicer. Shame it was such a bother turning it on.

As the tv lit up, Robin was the first one to become alert. It was quite an occasion. Soon all the ghosts gathered in the living room. Or the deading room, as Pat once joked much to Thomas's dismay.

"What is the program for today, I wonder?" Pat asked nobody in particular.

"Maybe it's a theater version of a novel about a young girl who'd never left her house, but then she was whisked away by a handsome stranger!.." said Kitty with visible excitement.

"Well, it isn't 1950s, luckily!" she was interrupted by Julian. "I'd hope for a Parliament session, maybe I could see some familiar faces that got all old, and fat, and wrinkly, and miserable, and maybe even publically disgraced!"

"Ahem," sounded the Captain's voice. "Don't you know what day it is today?"

Everyone went silent.

"Tiny moonah day?" asked Robin.

"Nobody keeps up with the calendar anymore! And why is that, I wonder? Are you too busy for the present?"

"Ah," Pat and Julian realised what was going on simultaneously.

"Yes, gentlemen!.. And ladies. Tomorrow is the 100th anniversary of the Armistice day!"

"Izza huggin day?" asked Robin.

"No, it's the day when the World War One was over," Pat corrected him discreetly.

"Ah, wasn't it the Amazing war?" asked Kitty.

"No, it was the Goods war," said Mary under her nose.

"The Great war, everybody! How could you ever forget such a thing?" the Captain looked genuinely disappointed.

"And so, are you hoping to see some... soldiers on the telly?" asked Julian doing his best to hide what he really wanted to say.

"Why yes, it would only be appropriate to celebrate our past giants. And recognise what they did for the country."

Julian did his best to smile politely, just bite his tongue, and not say what he thought was giant about them. There were some... doubts about the Captain in his mind, but he knew that voicing them would probably mean living with the fuglies in the cellar at least for a week.

"Ooh, there are some nice men in the box!" said Kitty. It was a live broadcast of the Royal Festival of Remembrance.

"Oh dear! Look! It's the prin- the queen!" the Captain wasn't quite used to there being a queen, especially as he remembered her as a young girl from his time.

"But she used to be so young just!.. fifty years ago..." Lady Button exclamed. "Well, fair enough, I guess."

"Whatever happened to princess Diana, I wonder..." muttered Julian thinking about how majorly hot she'd been before he died and never heard of her again.

"Silence, everybody, please!" the Captain pointed at the telly that was showing a military choir. Not a moment after he started humming the song they were singing, but the performance was a potpourri of various songs, and he kept mixing up musical phrases. "Oh, I wish it was a normal concert!"

"Silence, everybody, please!" repeated Thomas. The Captain looked at him in slight annoyance. "I'm trying to listen to the poems!"

"Them's has some nice clothes. Very shiny," mumbled Mary.

Heather Button moved a bit closer to the screen. She was visibly interested in what was happening.

"Wait, Cap, aren't you the only one of us who was alive during the Great war?" asked Pat suddenly.

"Why yes, yes, I was, but I was at school back then."

"Wow, do you remember the actual Armistice day then?"

"Of course! Our principal read us the newspaper in the morning, then at dinner we were given an apple each, and we were allowed to go to bed 15 minutes later than usual."

Pat made a grimace that showed that it wasn't quite his idea of a celebration.

"Ooh, that's quite a fiest, I thinks!" Mary agreed. Fanny and Kitty exchanged glances.

"But what did it feel like? It should had been exhilarating!" Pat continued his questioning.

"Oh, yes, it was! Utterly exhilating! An overwhelming sense of relief and joy. It felt as if everything was possible! I felt like embracing everyone around me and I even did--"

"Wait a moment!" interrupted Pat looking at the tv. "Is Tom Jones still alive?! But he's older than me!"

"Oh, who cares?" Julian wasn't very happy about that interruption. "This old bag is also older than you!"

"Her name is Heather, you arrogant man!" Fanny exploded.

"Whatever! Hey, Captain! What did you do on the V-day you said? Something about embracing someone."

The Captain would blush if he could. He cleared his throat.

"I... I did stay up even later than 15 minutes!"

"Oh yes? And who were you embracing at that time, huh?"

"Nobody! My pillow!"

"Please!" shouted Thomas all of a sudden. "Please, let us just watch the performance! I'm trying to appreciate the poetic craft of these songs!"

For a minute everyone stayed silent. The only sounds were the sound of a pretty cheesy patriotic song on the telly and quiet snoring of Heather Button.

Then the presenter called in a WW2 veteran to give a speech. The Captain's posture became even tenser.

"Good lord," he said staring at the screen intently, "Some of them are still alive..."

"How old would they be?" asked Kitty.

"105... he... they would be 105 or younger."

Julian bit his tongue, he knew there would be another time to press him some more. Then he suddenly screamed:

"Was the old bag's birthday in August?"

"Heather Button's! But yes, it was in August!" Fanny confirmed.

"Leo," noted Robin.

"August 1919!" Julian sounded very excited. "That's what your grandson did on the Armistice day!"

"I beg your pardon!" Lady Button sounded shocked.

"He fu--!"

"QUIET!!!" shouted Thomas as another song had started.


End file.
